US House lawmakers introduce bill to limit criminal liability for blockchain developers
Summary
- US House lawmakers said they have jointly introduced the “Blockchain Development Act,” which would exclude blockchain software developers from criminal prosecution.
- They said the bill would clarify the scope of federal criminal provisions governing “unlicensed money transmitting businesses.”
- The industry said that passage of the bill could ease legal uncertainty for “open-source developers” and “infrastructure builders.”
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US Representatives Scott Fitzgerald, Ben Cline and Zoe Lofgren have jointly introduced the “Blockchain Development Act,” legislation that would explicitly exclude blockchain software developers from criminal prosecution, Crypto in America host Eleanor Terrett reported on the 26th (local time).
At the heart of the bill is a clarification of the scope of federal criminal provisions (Section 1960) governing “unlicensed money transmitting businesses.” The provision was originally designed to regulate custodial operators that hold and manage customers’ funds.
However, in the Tornado Cash and Samourai Wallet cases, the provision was applied even to software developers who did not directly control users’ funds, making it a key point of contention between the crypto industry and regulators.
The bill would codify that merely developing software or distributing code cannot, by itself, subject an individual to criminal liability. The industry says that if the bill passes, it could significantly reduce legal uncertainty for open-source developers and infrastructure builders.
JH Kim
reporter1@bloomingbit.ioHi, I'm a Bloomingbit reporter, bringing you the latest cryptocurrency news.
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